Washingtonians to Get Public Option on State’s Health-Insurance Exchange

Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday signed into law a bill that creates a public option for Washington’s health benefit exchange, a move intended to lower costs and boost insurance coverage across the state.

Sponsored by Democratic lawmakers and requested by Inslee, Senate Bill 5526 creates “Cascade Care,” a program to offer standardized plans for individual health coverage, to be offered by private insurers on the benefit exchange.

The plans won’t be available until January 2021, and it’s too early to know what exact coverage they will offer or how much they’ll drive down health-insurance costs.

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